Llover Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb llover means to rain, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Llover is a weather verb, used almost only in the third person singular: llueve, llovió, llovía. It appears in the idiom llover a cántaros, to rain cats and dogs. Like every Spanish verb, llover changes its ending for each person and tense, and this page gives you the complete picture: every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, all from the verified conjugation tables. For example, in the present tense you say Llueve mucho en abril — "It rains a lot in April". Work through the tables below, read the notes for each tense, and then test yourself with the examples, the common mistakes and the quiz at the end of the page.

The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: lluevo, llueves, llueve and llueven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: llovemos, llovéis. llover is a weather verb, so in practice you will meet it in the third person singular: llueve, llovió, llovía. The tables below show the full paradigm the engine returns, but everyday use is impersonal.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: llover
  • English: to rain
  • Verb type: stem-changing -er verb (o → ue)
  • Ending: -er
  • Gerund: lloviendo
  • Past participle: llovido
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + llovido)

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for llover, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for llover. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem.

Present indicative

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | lluevo | | tú | llueves | | él/ella/Ud. | llueve | | nosotros/as | llovemos | | vosotros/as | llovéis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | llueven |

Preterite

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | lloví | | tú | lloviste | | él/ella/Ud. | llovió | | nosotros/as | llovimos | | vosotros/as | llovisteis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | llovieron |

Imperfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | llovía | | tú | llovías | | él/ella/Ud. | llovía | | nosotros/as | llovíamos | | vosotros/as | llovíais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | llovían |

Future

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | lloveré | | tú | lloverás | | él/ella/Ud. | lloverá | | nosotros/as | lloveremos | | vosotros/as | lloveréis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | lloverán |

Conditional

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | llovería | | tú | lloverías | | él/ella/Ud. | llovería | | nosotros/as | lloveríamos | | vosotros/as | lloveríais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | lloverían |

Present perfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | he llovido | | tú | has llovido | | él/ella/Ud. | ha llovido | | nosotros/as | hemos llovido | | vosotros/as | habéis llovido | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | han llovido |

Pluperfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | había llovido | | tú | habías llovido | | él/ella/Ud. | había llovido | | nosotros/as | habíamos llovido | | vosotros/as | habíais llovido | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían llovido |

Future perfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | habré llovido | | tú | habrás llovido | | él/ella/Ud. | habrá llovido | | nosotros/as | habremos llovido | | vosotros/as | habréis llovido | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán llovido |

Conditional perfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | habría llovido | | tú | habrías llovido | | él/ella/Ud. | habría llovido | | nosotros/as | habríamos llovido | | vosotros/as | habríais llovido | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían llovido |

Present subjunctive

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | llueva | | tú | lluevas | | él/ella/Ud. | llueva | | nosotros/as | llovamos | | vosotros/as | llováis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | lluevan |

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | lloviera | | tú | llovieras | | él/ella/Ud. | lloviera | | nosotros/as | lloviéramos | | vosotros/as | llovierais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | llovieran |

Imperative (affirmative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | llueve | | él/ella/Ud. | llueva | | nosotros/as | llovamos | | vosotros/as | lloved | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | lluevan |

Imperative (negative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | lluevas | | él/ella/Ud. | llueva | | nosotros/as | llovamos | | vosotros/as | llováis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | lluevan |

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund lloviendo with estar for the progressive: está lloviendo
Past participle llovido with haber for the perfect tenses: he llovido

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: lluevo, llueves, llueve and llueven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: llovemos, llovéis. For llover, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Llueve mucho en abril — "It rains a lot in April".

Preterite

Use the preterite for finished actions with a clear end, often with ayer, el año pasado or anoche. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For llover, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, llovió toda la tarde — "Yesterday, It rained all afternoon".

Imperfect

Use the imperfect for background, habits and actions in progress in the past, often with de niño, antes or mientras. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For llover, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, llovía a cántaros en la ciudad — "As a child, It used to rain cats and dogs in the city".

Future

Use the future for plans, predictions and promises, often with mañana, el año que viene or pronto. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For llover, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, lloverá sobre el campo — "Tomorrow, It will rain over the countryside".

Conditional

Use the conditional for polite requests, hypotheticals and what would happen, often with si clauses. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For llover, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Llovería mucho en abril si pudiera — "It would rain a lot in April if I could".

Present perfect

Use the present perfect for recent actions and experiences, often with hoy, esta semana or ya. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For llover, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, ha llovido toda la tarde — "Today, It has rained all afternoon".

Pluperfect

Use the pluperfect when one past action happened before another past action. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For llover, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Ya había llovido a cántaros en la ciudad antes de salir — "It had already rained cats and dogs in the city before leaving".

Future perfect

Use the future perfect for something that will already be finished by a future time. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For llover, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, habrá llovido sobre el campo — "By tomorrow, It will have rained over the countryside".

Conditional perfect

Use the conditional perfect for what would have happened under different conditions. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For llover, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Habría llovido mucho en abril con más tiempo — "It would have rained a lot in April with more time".

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: lluevo, llueves, llueve and llueven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: llovemos, llovéis. For llover, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que llueva toda la tarde — "I hope It rains all afternoon".

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past. The -ra forms are shown here; the -se forms use the same stem. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For llover, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si lloviera a cántaros en la ciudad, todo cambiaría — "If It rained cats and dogs in the city, everything would change".

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: lluevo, llueves, llueve and llueven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: llovemos, llovéis. For llover, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: ¡Que llueva sobre el campo! — "I hope it rains over the countryside!".

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: lluevo, llueves, llueve and llueven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: llovemos, llovéis. For llover, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: ¡Que no llueva mucho en abril! — "I hope it doesn't rain a lot in April!".

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with llover, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Llueve mucho en abril — "It rains a lot in April"
  2. Llueve toda la tarde — "It rains all afternoon"
  3. Ayer, llovió a cántaros en la ciudad — "Yesterday, It rained cats and dogs in the city"
  4. Antes, llovía sobre el campo — "Before, It used to rain over the countryside"
  5. Mañana, lloverá sin parar en invierno — "Tomorrow, It will rain without stopping in winter"
  6. Llovería mucho en abril si tuviera más tiempo — "It would rain a lot in April if I had more time"
  7. Ha llovido toda la tarde — "It has rained all afternoon"
  8. Espero que llueva a cántaros en la ciudad — "I hope It rains cats and dogs in the city"
  9. Ya había llovido sobre el campo antes de salir — "It had already rained over the countryside before leaving"
  10. Llovía sin parar en invierno cuando eran jóvenes — "It used to rain without stopping in winter when they were young"

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo lluevo mucho en abril. — Right: Llueve mucho en abril — llover is a weather verb, used in the third person singular: Llueve mucho en abril. It has no personal subject.
  2. Wrong: Yo llovo toda la tarde. — Right: Yo lluevo toda la tarde. — llover is a stem-changing verb (o → ue): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is lluevo, not llovo.
  3. Wrong: Espero que llueve toda la tarde — Right: Espero que llueva toda la tarde — After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que llueva toda la tarde — not the indicative Espero que llueve toda la tarde.
  4. Wrong: Ayer, llueve a cántaros en la ciudad — Right: Ayer, llovió a cántaros en la ciudad — Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, llovió a cántaros en la ciudad.
  5. Wrong: De niño, llovió sobre el campo todos los días — Right: De niño, llovía sobre el campo todos los días — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, llovía sobre el campo todos los días.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on llover. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: ______ mucho en abril — "It rains a lot in April" (present) A. lloverá B. llueve C. llovió D. llovía

  2. Complete the sentence: ______ toda la tarde — "It rained all afternoon" (preterite) A. llovía B. lloverá C. llovió D. llueve

  3. Complete the sentence: ______ a cántaros en la ciudad — "It used to rain cats and dogs in the city" (imperfect) A. llovía B. llueve C. llovió D. lloverá

  4. Complete the sentence: ______ sobre el campo — "It will rain over the countryside" (future) A. lloverá B. llueve C. llovió D. llovía

  5. Complete the sentence: ______ sin parar en invierno — "It would rain without stopping in winter" (conditional) A. llovía B. llovería C. llueve D. llovió

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que ______ mucho en abril — "I hope It rains a lot in April" (present subjunctive) A. llovía B. llueva C. llueve D. llovió

  7. Complete the sentence: Si ______ toda la tarde, todo cambiaría — "If It rained all afternoon, everything would change" (imperfect subjunctive) A. llovía B. lloviera C. llueve D. llovió

  8. Complete the sentence: ______ a cántaros en la ciudad — "It has rained cats and dogs in the city" (present perfect) A. ha llovido B. llueve C. llovió D. llovía

  9. Complete the sentence: ______ sobre el campo — "It will have rained over the countryside" (future perfect) A. llovió B. llovía C. habrá llovido D. llueve

  10. Which is the gerund of llover, used with estar for the progressive? A. lluevo B. lloví C. lloviendo D. llovido

Answer key

  1. llueve — The present form is llueve.
  2. llovió — The preterite form is llovió.
  3. llovía — The imperfect form is llovía.
  4. lloverá — The future form is lloverá.
  5. llovería — The conditional form is llovería.
  6. llueva — The present subjunctive form is llueva.
  7. lloviera — The imperfect subjunctive form is lloviera.
  8. ha llovido — The present perfect form is ha llovido.
  9. habrá llovido — The future perfect form is habrá llovido.
  10. lloviendo — The gerund of llover is lloviendo: estoy lloviendo. The participle llovido is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does llover mean in English?

llover means to rain. It is used in everyday situations such as Llueve mucho en abril — "It rains a lot in April". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is llover regular?

No. llover is a stem-changing -er verb (o → ue). The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: lluevo, llueves, llueve and llueven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: llovemos, llovéis. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the plain stem, which is the part learners most often get right by accident.

What is the gerund and the past participle of llover?

The gerund is lloviendo and the past participle is llovido. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.

How do I say "I rain" in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Ayer, llovió toda la tarde — "Yesterday, It rained all afternoon". For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: De niño, llovía a cántaros en la ciudad — "As a child, It used to rain cats and dogs in the city". For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Hoy, ha llovido toda la tarde — "Today, It has rained all afternoon".

What is the difference between llover and nevar?

Nevar is the matching weather verb for snow: nieva en invierno. Llover is for rain, and both are impersonal. Llover is a weather verb, used almost only in the third person singular: llueve, llovió, llovía. It appears in the idiom llover a cántaros, to rain cats and dogs.

Is llover only used in the third person?

In practice, yes. llover is a weather verb, so you will hear it as llueve or llovió, with no personal subject. The tables show the full paradigm the engine returns, but everyday Spanish keeps weather verbs impersonal.

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